ABSTRACT
Canada has vast peatland areas, many of which are permanently, but discontinuously, frozen. For environmental research purposes, including monitoring the effects of climate change on the landscape, and for land use planning, it is frequently necessary to assess the thermal character of peatlands. This chapter aims to evaluate ground-penetrating radar (GPR) as a means for accurate mapping of frozen and unfrozen peatlands. Surveying in the discontinuous permafrost zone presents unique problems to the interpretation of GPR profiles. The bog-fen complex of the Fort Simpson area comprises numerous peat landforms typical of the discontinuous permafrost zone. Ground-penetrating radar surveying is a fast, reliable, and inexpensive method for non-destructive mapping of shallow subsurface materials. GPR is useful for obtaining a more continuous perspective of the distribution of permafrost and subsurface materials in peatlands in the discontinuous permafrost. The delineation of frozen vs. unfrozen material on the GPR profiles was facilitated by the distinctive character of their respective radar returns.
